Konceptbasering

Konceptbasering is an educational approach that structures learning around a core set of concepts that recur across subjects and units. The aim is to foster durable understanding and the ability to transfer knowledge to new situations, rather than focusing primarily on memorizing isolated facts or procedures. In practice, konceptbasering emphasizes identifying essential concepts in a subject, organizing the curriculum around those concepts, and framing learning with essential questions that invite inquiry and explanation. The term is used in Danish and Norwegian education contexts and is often equated with concept-based learning or concept-based curriculum and assessment in English-language discussions.

Rooted in constructivist and inquiry-based traditions, konceptbasering aligns with efforts to develop students’ conceptual frameworks, critical thinking, and cross-disciplinary transfer. It contrasts with traditional fact-driven instruction by asking learners to explain, compare, and apply ideas in varied contexts. The focus is on building enduring understandings rather than simply recalling information.

Key elements include a focus on enduring concepts rather than discrete facts; essential questions that guide inquiry; explicit use of concept maps and models to represent relationships; curriculum coherence across grade levels and subjects; and assessment that targets conceptual understanding, transfer, and performance. Implementation involves selecting central concepts for a domain, designing units that explore those concepts through inquiry and real-world tasks, using progression to increase complexity, providing professional development for teachers, and employing rubrics that measure understanding and transfer.

Benefits include improved comprehension and transfer, greater coherence across grades, and more meaningful learning. Challenges involve systemic curriculum redesign, time and resources for planning, balancing conceptual and factual content, and developing reliable ways to assess conceptual mastery. See also concept-based curriculum, inquiry-based learning, and educational coherence.